One Week Out

For those of you who don’t already know, I’ll be starting a Southbound attempt of the Continental Divide Trail on June 25th to hopefully complete my Triple Crown. 

I had originally planned to start a few days ago, on the 15th, but decided to delay a few days to give the snow in Glacier NP some more time to melt. Jokes on me, the alpine regions of the park are still under a winter weather advisory as “heavy wet snow” continues to fall, but that’s fine. I’m tired of waiting. 

Killing Time on the CT

To make up for the disappointment of postponing my start date I decided to hike the first 100 miles of the Colorado Trail. This was my least favorite section of the trail when I did my thru in 2022, and I was excited to revisit it in early season conditions.

I started my day in Denver, waking up on Chaunce’s (of backpacker radio) couch after a night of drinking LMNT Margaritas, which is a uniquely hiker trash drink. I headed out to the trailhead early, hoping to beat the heat. No luck. The burn zone after the South Platte River was still as hot and dry as I remembered it, but this time I camped halfway through it, 20 miles into the trail, to help break it up. Definitely a good call, I got to knock out most of the exposed section the next morning before the sun became unbearably hot. I got to the fire station to refill on water at about 6:30 that morning and enjoyed my cold-soaked oatmeal next to the firemen eating their bacon and eggs. I pretended not to be jealous. 

Day two brought the changes I had hoped for from an early season start, and I was blown away by how green the hillsides were, and how many wildflowers I saw. No real highlights to mention here other than lots of beautiful aspens, and a hungry bear who tried to steal my bear can that evening. I chased him off without issue, and didn’t hear anything the rest of the night. 23 miles.

Day three was spent almost entirely above 10,000ft, and I finally got some of the sweeping views that I associate with hiking in Colorado. I camped in a beautiful Aspen grove just past Kenosha Pass, in the same site I had camped in two years ago, but this time a full day earlier in my hike. 25 miles.

Day four I woke up feeling really strong. Skiing 100+ days this winter had really prepped my legs for trail, and I spent the morning toying with the idea of hiking the remaining 35 miles into town. I ditched a few days worth of food in the Kenosha Pass hiker box and headed out. The climb up Georgia Pass was as stunning as I remembered, but the initial decent was a nightmare. Snow was holding strong on the north face, and I spent nearly a mile postholing knee deep in some of the sloppiest snow I’ve ever hiked in. Very reminiscent of afternoons in the High Sierra on the PCT last year. Still, I made it down and decided to complete my 35 mile plan. I arrived in Breckenridge at around 7:30 that evening, where I found my good friend Crush from the PCT waiting to pick me up.

I spent the next few days bumming (hiker trashing) on her futon and exploring Breckenridge, trying not to think too much about how badly I wanted to start the CDT.

Gear

I’m going with a bit of a different set-up than I’ve taken on other trails, and have completely switched up my “Big Three”

For my pack I’ll be bringing the new Zpacks Ultra Arc Haul (which, for legal reasons I have to disclose that I received for free for the purpose of review) in the 50L size. It’s nice and light and can fit my bear can internally, so I’m excited to see how I feel about it.

My tent is the new Zpacks Solo Plex Lite, and for my sleeping bag I’m bringing the Western Mountaineering Summerlite. Don’t worry, I sleep pretty warm.

Expectations

I really don’t know what to expect out of the CDT, but I know I’m excited to get going. I haven’t chosen which routes I’m taking, but I’m looking forward to seeing Glaicer and spending time in the Wind River Range. I really want to see a grizzly (from a comfortable distance) and hope to make the same caliber of friends that I’ve made on my other hikes. As much as I love being alone in the backcountry, it’s always the people you’re with that make the experience special.

I’ll update this blog as often as I can (no promises) but if you really want to stay up to date with my journey the best way to do that is on Instagram, @moosejuicehikes .